The present invention relates generally to shoes, and more particularly to shoes to accommodate the walking habits of infants and children.
Typically, an infant faced with the difficulties of learning to walk bears additional hardships when trying to adapt to wearing shoes or sneakers, particularly when the shoes or sneakers are new. The soles of a new pair of shoes or sneakers are relatively stiff by virtue of the material of which it is comprised, the material on the inside of the shoe or sneaker, or a combination of both. Thus, an infant must "break-in" the region of the sole which must flex when a normal heel-to-toe step is taken. Most older children, in the years prior to adolescence but after having learned the fundamentals of walking or running, must similarly break-in new shoes or sneakers. During the break-in period, the new shoe or sneaker may cause the infant or child discomfort and often severe pain in day-to-day walking or running activities. In some cases, such discomfort and pain could hinder the normal growth and development of a child's foot, as well as the way in which the child learns to walk or run. For example, a child may tend to move his or her foot to the side rather than heel-to-toe, thus causing the child to drag the medial side portion of the shoe. By the time the shoe is broken in by the child, the child may have already developed such a bad habit or improper form which cannot be easily reversed.
Parents are particularly aware of the time it takes a child to break-in a pair of shoes or sneakers. Many parents will attest that the break-in period is often completed only after the child's foot has outgrown the shoe or sneaker or after the protective and aesthetic functions of the upper have been destroyed. Even if this is not the case, the region of the shoe which flexes while taking a heel-to-toe step does not become highly flexible so as to ease the steps taken by a child.
Infants, and children in their years prior to adolescence, also tend to drag the toe portion of a shoe after taking a step. This dragging action of a foot could occur for several reasons, whether it is before, during or after the break-in period for the sole. Most would attribute this poor habit to improper or lack of education as to proper walking form or generally to laziness of the feet during walking activities. For those children which tend to move their feet to the side while taking a step, the side sections of the toe portion are dragged. Others will drag the front and/or the top sections of the toe portion. The dragging of the toe portion of a shoe may cause the top, front and sides of the toe portion to become scuffed and worn, thereby destroying the protective and aesthetic functions of the toe portion, especially where the upper is made of a canvas or soft leather.
Moreover, the dragging of the toe portion also may cause infants and children to stumble or trip on the toe portion of the shoe. In most every case, it is the specific structure of the toe portion which causes the child to stumble or trip. FIG. 1 of the drawings shows a side view of the toe portion of a prior art shoe. Thus, it can be seen that the sole portion forms a protuberance about the toe portion, thereby yielding an excess of material on which a child will trip as his or her foot is dragged. FIG. 2 shows the manner in which a prior art shoe is dragged by many children. Such a manner of walking may at first appear to be unusual, however, parents can attest to the scuffed and worn portions of a toe cap which is evidence that such dragging steps are in fact taken. Careful observation reveals that such tripping often occurs as a result of the child dragging the toe portion of the shoe from the upper (often made of a smooth leather) to the protruding periphery of the sole portion. The child will effortlessly drag his or her feet along the smooth contour of the toe cap but will encounter problems when the protuberance about the periphery of the toe portion engages the ground thereby tripping the child. Thus, one specific cause of a child tripping while dragging their feet is the discontinuous transition from the upper to the sole of the shoe.
In an attempt to alleviate the above shortcomings associated with breaking in the sole of a shoe, those in the industry have provided relief grooves in the bottom of the sole portion of a shoe or sneaker. Such relief grooves extend transversely from the lateral side of the shoe to the medial side of the shoe in the region which flexes while taking a step, and are relatively narrow in width and shallow in depth. Relief grooves are primarily employed on sneakers or other recreational shoes since such grooves can be integrated with the bottom design of the sneaker or other recreational shoe, which bottom design is typically provided for aesthetic value as well as for providing traction. Moreover, sneakers are economically susceptible to the provision of such relief grooves since they are easily formed in the rubber or plastic of which sneakers are normally made. It is more difficult to incorporate the relief groove concept into shoes other than those having rubber or plastic soles.
While relief grooves provide some increased flexibility in the region of concern, the degree to which the flexibility can be increased is limited by the type of material used, the width of the groove and the thickness of the sole. The flexure region of a shoe, that is, the region which creases while taking a step, will almost invariably be wider than such relief grooves. Thus, the degree to which such relief grooves ease the steps taken by a child is substantially lessened. Moreover, the flexure region of a shoe will vary in width and location depending, inter alia, on the walking habits of each individual child and the type of activities engaged in while wearing the shoes.
The foot dragging problem discussed above has not been addressed by the shoe industry to the same degree as the flexure problem. It appears as though all aspects of the foot dragging problem have not even been recognized by those in the shoe industry. Toe caps made of thermoplastics are well-known and, by virtue of the characteristics attributed to thermoplastics, alleviate the problem of accelerated wear and tear on the toe portion of the upper as imparted thereon by children while dragging their feet. However, such thermoplastic toe caps do not prevent children from stumbling or tripping when dragging their feet since the toe cap is formed as part of the upper which is fastened to the periphery of the sole portion. This results in the same discontinuous transition from the upper to the bottom surface of the sole portion. The protuberance about the periphery of the toe portion of the shoe remains for the infant or child to stumble on when it engages the ground.
The above shortcomings make it apparent that significant improvements which would facilitate the education of infants and children as to the proper form of walking and running are warranted. It is imperative to note that several adolescents and adults, particularly those having various diseases relating to the control of the muscular or nervous system, or those with certain orthopedic disorders, also experience the foregoing problems with footwear. Thus, although the present invention will find its purposes to be furthered primarily with respect to footwear for infants and children, it is directed at footwear in general.